Star Wars: Episode VII Gets 2015 Release Date

The new instalment in the Star Wars series will open in cinemas on December 18, 2015, Walt Disney Studios has announced.

Star Wars: Episode VII, to be directed by JJ Abrams, is set to begin filming in spring 2014 at Pinewood Studios.

Disney purchased Star Wars producer Lucasfilm for $4.05bn (£2.52bn at the time) in 2012, and promised at least three more films in the series, one of the biggest movie franchises of all time.

The company's chief executive Bob Iger said: "This, obviously, is one of the most important movies we have in the next few years, and we've chosen a date we believe will allow the creative team the time to make a great film."

No acting choices have been announced for the new film, but original cast members Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher and Harrison Ford have been in talks to appear in the upcoming film.

Open auditions have also been announced for a film that is widely believed to be Star Wars: Episode VII.

The Disney invitation describes a "nationwide search for lead roles for a Walt Disney Pictures film".

Abrams - best known for TV shows Alias and Lost and for directing the most recent films in the Star Trek series - will team up with Lawrence Kasdan to write the movie.

Kasdan co-wrote the screenplays for the second and third Star Wars films, The Empire Strikes Back and Return Of The Jedi.